Welcome to Friday, everyone. The end of the week is finally here, so it's time to celebrate by exploring the latest sales currently available on the Google Play Store. As always, I've highlighted the more interesting titles in bold, and I'm glad to report that there are a few high-quality games available...
New Google notification gives you a daily overview of the stocks you follow
Google and Google Assistant's relationship with stocks has been messy, to say the least. Even though you can add stocks and view your portfolio in the Assistant's settings, you can't ask it to tell you what your shares are at without integrating third parties. But there's some movement, as the Google...
Google Messages and Phone pick up new Material icons with latest betas (APK Download)
Google has been tweaking its popular apps over the past few months to align them with the refreshed Material guidelines. After showing signs of a refresh not too long ago, Google’s dialer and messaging apps are now picking up the new outlined icons with their latest beta releases. These rather subtle...
If you're still running Android 2.3.7 Gingerbread, WhatsApp will stop working for you tomorrow
The day has come. We knew it was upon us, we prepared for it, we stocked supplies just in case it brought on the apocalypse, and now all we can do is brace ourselves for impact. Tomorrow, WhatsApp will stop working on devices running Android 2.3.7. Your collector Galaxy S, Desire HD, Nexus One, Droid...
Google Lookout uses AI to help visually-impaired people navigate the world (Update: Now for Pixel 4 and 4 XL)
Update 1: 2019/05/08 4:18am PDT
Spreads to Samsung and LG
Update 2: 2019/05/31 3:47am PDT
Now on the Pixel 3a and 3a XL
Update 3: 2019/05/31 3:47am PDT
Available on the Pixel 4 and 4 XL
I can't imagine having to navigate today's world while visually impaired. From streets to people...
TweetCaster stops working entirely, developer says Twitter broke it (Update: Back in action)
Update 1: 2020/01/30 12:56pm PST
Given how long it had been since we saw TweetCaster updated, news of its interface with Twitter breaking the other day filled us with just the slightest sense of dread
TweetCaster is one of the oldest third-party Twitter apps available on Android, as it was...
Google Earth now lets you see the stars from your smartphone
Until recently, when zooming out in the Google Earth app to get a full view of the globe on your mobile device, you'd see our beautifully blue planet amidst a completely black background. However, thanks to what Google is crediting as advancements in mobile device processing power, you can now get...
Five (of many) new emoji coming to Android this year
Each year, the Unicode Consortium reviews a seemingly infinite number of proposals that result in a list of emoji to be added to smartphones. Then companies like Google design the emoji for their operating systems like Android.
This week, Unicode announced their 62 new emoji, along with skin...
Classic strategy RPG Disgaea 1 lands on the Play Store as a faithful remaster
Nippon Ichi Software has released its classic strategy RPG Disgaea 1 on the Google Play Store, seemingly out of nowhere. This new release goes by the name Disgaea 1 Complete, which means the title is indeed a remaster of the original Disgaea: Hour of Darkness. Better yet, Disgaea 1 Complete...
HBO finally lets you download shows and movies to watch offline, starting in Europe
HBO has some great exclusive shows that are only scarcely available outside its network, so you need to rely on the cable company's apps to enjoy its content on the go. Besides HBO Go and HBO Now, Home Box Office also offers a European version of its service, simply called HBO. This app is first in...
YouTube Music's expanded New Releases section is rolling out widely
YouTube Music has had an official mix of new releases and showed you a few selected recent records in their own section since last year, but until now, you couldn't see more than ten new albums or singles there. With version 3.49 of the streaming service, first published mid-January, this has started...
Play Store teardown reveals automatic install for pre-registered titles may be coming
According to a recent teardown by the folks at XDA Developers, the Play Store might be picking up a new feature someday that allows it to automatically install titles, like apps or games, that you pre-register to be notified about. That could mean that the next time you want to check out an upcoming...
Hangouts Meet will now let you use your phone as a mic while your computer handles the video
Yesterday it was revealed that Google was planning on merging several of its corporate-facing products into yet another messaging service to take on the likes of Slack, and today one of those pieces is getting updated with a new feature. Hangouts Meet just picked up the ability to use different sources...
Google is killing Google One Today, gives supporters only a week's notice
Today Google has announced that it's killing its One Today service. This isn't the renamed Google Drive paid storage program, but an app-based donation system you've probably never heard of, haven't used, and won't miss. Those still using it have a week before it shuts down.
Google's One Today was...
Google's Area 120 team has created a Pinterest clone called Tangi
Google is a big company with a lot of different projects and groups developing "experimental" products that may never see the light of day. Google's Area 120 division is one such incubator for experimental products, and it has a new thing to show off. It's a Pinterest clone called Tangi because one...
Google app tests a darker shade of gray, shows a few signs of AMOLED black
This post is dedicated to some of our Android Police readers and the most passionate commenters who have repeatedly argued that dark gray doesn't count as a proper dark mode and that absolute black is the only AMOLED-friendly color that matters. I won't dare discuss this further — I once tried, it...
32 temporarily free and 43 on-sale apps and games for Wednesday
Welcome to Wednesday, everyone. Now that the middle of the week is here, it's time once again to check out the latest app and game sales that are available on the Google Play Store. As always, I've highlighted the interesting titles in bold to make discovery easier, and even though it's the middle...
Add to playlist button appears in Google Podcasts for some, but it doesn't work yet
A new "add to playlist" button is appearing for some in Google Podcasts. As of now, trying to actually use the button doesn't do anything, but its inclusion is likely an indicator that playlist/queuing functionality will eventually come to the app, a frequent complaint against Google Podcasts since...
Ubisoft jumps into the auto battle genre with Might & Magic: Chess Royale (Update: Out now)
Update 1: 2020/01/13 10:03am PST
Might & Magic: Chess Royale officially coming to Android on January 30th
Update 2: 2020/01/29 7:07am PST
Might & Magic: Chess Royale is available a day early
Early this morning, Might & Magic: Chess Royale popped up on the Google Play Store...
Google wants to take on Slack and Microsoft Teams by making another messaging service
Google has so far had a love-hate relationship with messaging services, as it threw several of them against the wall, but only a few stuck, and that too not for long. But this didn’t deter the company from renewing its efforts to make another attempt, this time for businesses. A report by The Information...
Infuriating Google Photos bug prevents edited H.265 videos from being saved
Some Android phones offer a nifty video solution called HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding) that records your creations in the H.265 format instead of H.264. This takes up less space on your phone and in your cloud library, so it's something many people toggle on (it's not on by default on a Pixel,...
Native call recording seems almost ready for launch in latest Google Phone app beta
Google has offered call transcriptions as part of its call screening service on Pixel phones for some time already, but we know the company is also working on native actual call recording in its Phone app. Following hints in the form of code strings in versions, XDA Developers managed to activate...
Google working on real-time multilingual transcriptions in Translate
While Google has been having issues with its multilingual speech-to-text algorithms, the company can generally be considered a cross-language processing pioneer thanks to its easy-to-use Translate app. The service is growing ever more powerful and has only recently seen improvements in offline accuracy...
TweetCaster stops working entirely, developer says Twitter broke it
TweetCaster is one of the oldest third-party Twitter apps available on Android, as it was originally published in 2010. However, the app hasn't been updated in over a year, and now it can't connect to Twitter at all.
Many Play Store reviews are pointing out the app no longer works, instead only providing...
QuakeAlertUSA might become your early earthquake warning app of choice
Anyone who lives near what's called the Ring of Fire is aware of "the big one" coming. Earthquakes are some of the most devastating natural disasters to occur in a short span of time. And while scientists have been able to develop an early warning system, it can only give people a moment's notice...
Pokémon Go will expand online PvP battles with a new ranked league in 2020 (Update: Rolling out now)
Update 1: 2020/01/28 10:10am PST
GO Battle League is starting to roll out
Pokémon GO got a little closer to its established universe when Pokémon trading was added to the game, which was soon followed by player versus player (PvP) Trainer Battles. Players are required to be within close physical...
Pokémon Home will let you share your Pokémon across multiple devices and games (Update: Coming Feb. 2020)
Update 1: 2020/01/28 9:22am PST
Nintendo reveals Pokémon HOME is coming to Android in February
Pokémon has been an international phenomenon ever since it populated the early Game Boys. By now, the franchise has become considerably more cross-platform, with Pokémon GO available on Android and...
Flashing Builds from the Android Open Source Project
Posted by Mitchell Wills, Android Build Software Engineer
AOSP has been around for a while, but flashing builds onto a development device has always required a number of manual steps. A year ago we launched Android's Continuous Integration Dashboard, which gives more visibility into the continuous...
Shadowgun War Games could be mobile's answer to Overwatch, and it's coming to Android Feb. 12 (Update)
Update 1: 2019/11/15 6:40am PST
Shadowgun War Games is now available for pre-registration
Update 2: 2020/01/28 7:05am PST
Shadowgun War Games will be officially available on February 12
It would appear that the pre-registration for Shadowgun War Games was announced last year, though...
New Pixel 4 Google Assistant is rolling out support for three-button navigation
The Pixel 4 launched with a few innovative features, among them a new version of Google Assistant that integrates much tighter with the system than older implementations. After its initial release, some issues quickly arose, though. You couldn't use the new Assistant with G Suite accounts or with...
Google Duo now lets you send notes and doodles to your contacts
Reports of Duo's death have been greatly exaggerated. The app has continued to receive new features and improvements over the past year, and seemingly no longer requires a phone number. Now there's a new feature you can try out: drawing notes.
"We’re introducing this feature as we got feedback from...
Get ready for the Game Developers Conference
Posted by Kacey Fahey, Games Developer Marketing, Google
Cross-posting from the Google Developers Blog.
Join us online or live* at the Google Developer Summits during the Game Developers Conference on March 16 and 17 to learn about the latest tools and updates to build great games, reach more players,...
